Find us on

EastEnders 'Peter' timidly touches Jacqueline Jossa’s baby bump

Hands on! Co-star Ben Hardy admires the actress' blooming bump while on set

As Jacqueline Jossa prepares to give birth to her first child next year, her co-star - who plays screen on-off boyfriend Peter Beale - was clearly curious about her budding baby bump.

While filming a scene for the soap, the actress, who plays Lauren Branning was pictured with actor Ben Hardy, as he gingerly reaches out to touch her bump.

It looks like Jacqueline was very happy with Ben's hands-on approach. Touching your pregnancy bump is one of those things that people feel an urge to do - and it's often unwanted. We wonder whether Ben/Peter was feeling her baby kick.

Filming in a freezing cold cemetery the actress was dressed in full winter gear, and you can see how big her bump is now. The padded jacket and scarf will definitely help to cover up the pregnancy, which has not been written into the EastEnders script.

It was only last month that the 22-year-old - six months pregnant at the time - admitted she was struggling to hide her baby bump while on set.

Writing on Twitter she said: "Feeling huge today, only going to get bigger now trying to hide bump on set isn't easy anymore #bumpproblems."

But help came in the form of advice from Jo Joyner – who played Lauren’s mum Tanya Branning.

These were some of the last EastEnders scenes that Jacqueline has filmed before going on maternity leave.

It's unclear whether the actress is leaving Albert Square for good or if she'll return after a having the baby, but she tweeted a picture of a bouquet of flowers she was given by the soap's executive producer Dominic Treadwell Collins. It's rumoured that Ben's character Peter is also leaving the square, at least for a while.